Dennis B

I'm always awestruck by the puzzle creators' eclectic and sizable wheelhouses compressed into grids of all sizes, with these gimmicks and themes woven into them. These clues are humbling and serve to remind me just how much I can stand to broaden my own range of interests, and gently stretch my active vocabulary to process the contexts of even the most deceptively simply-phrased clues. I was thus thrilled when I caught on to today's micro-puzzle, and it looked like I was about to make a personal best time, when... a single typo hidden amidst this dense grid of letters threw my time off, considerably. My hat is off to John Kugelman for an esoteric, yet solvable (if only by crosses), Sunday grid. Kudos, too to editor Joel Fagliano's tireless and timeless work, particularly filling in for convalescing Will Shortz. All my best to all.

Welcome, Jo!